


a hand in the cold

by caydiink (gayleb)



Series: Dream and the various parental figures he manages to collect [1]
Category: Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Clay | Dream Angst (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Dadza!, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Happy Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Kinda, Not Beta Read, One Shot, PLS I JUST LOVE THEM AFGBHJGFBHFGGH, Sick Character, Sickfic, who doesn't long to be adopteb by philza minecraft lbr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-23
Updated: 2020-12-23
Packaged: 2021-03-11 02:13:26
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28267431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gayleb/pseuds/caydiink
Summary: There's been a virus attacking server admins recently. Dream thought he could escape it.But he was very, very wrong.Philza finds him in the woods, hurt and alone, and decides to take him in.:))AKA i just want Phil and Dream to have a good relationship PLS I LOVE THEM!!!
Relationships: Clay | Dream & Phil Watson (Video Blogging RPF)
Series: Dream and the various parental figures he manages to collect [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2070822
Comments: 16
Kudos: 1010





	a hand in the cold

**Author's Note:**

> did i spend last night writing 2k worth of Dream angst just so i could get the Dream and Philza relationship i crave? Yes! Have i started the next chapter of my longer fic? No! 
> 
> anyways i just think we need more fics with their relationship and Phil being a Dad tm because i love reading them and i love Them

Everything hurt.

That was all Dream could think as he curled up on the ground, the dirt hard beneath him as he gripped his stomach tighter.

He felt like he was burning from the inside out, a dying star just waiting to explode, his veins filled with lava and his lungs filling with smoke as he let out a weak cough, blood staining the earth in front of him.

It had happened in the blink of an eye. One second, the admin was walking through the woods, back to his house, minding his own business.

And then, he had collapsed on the ground, pain overtaking him, the difficulty that breathing posed was the only thing stopping him from screaming in agony.

He tried to take deep breaths, tried to count to four in his head as he breathed in, tried to calm himself down, but the taste of blood on his lips and the cramping of his stomach distracted him.

He thought he had made it through whatever disease or virus it was that had been taking down server admins left right and center. He thought he was safe.

But apparently he had thought wrong.

Whatever virus had been attacking admins had finally latched onto him, and it was so much worse than he could have imagined.

Dream cursed himself for not telling anyone where he was going. He cursed himself for not taking the virus more seriously, and having any precautions for if he had gotten it.

Now Dream was stuck on the ground, in the middle of the forest, trying not to vomit as he held himself tighter, tears of pain making their way down his cheeks.

Dream felt helpless, his body shivering as he shut his eyes. It was difficult to breathe through the mask, but he didn’t have the strength to take it off on his own. He weakly shook his head, trying to dislodge it slightly, to give him space to breathe.

He was so fucking cold. Winter had just set into the server, and it was cold out. Too cold for him in his thin hoodie, not having planned to be out this long. His fingers were starting to go numb, and Dream knew that, beneath the mask, his cheeks would be flushed from the cold.

His vision had just begun to go dark, blackness fading in at the edges, when he heard footsteps approaching him from behind, a startled yell from whoever had stumbled upon him.

_What a sight I must be,_ Dream thought blearily in his last moments of consciousness.

He felt a warm hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently, a voice pleading with him to _just keep your eyes open, that’s it, just stay awake a little longer now._

Dream felt himself being picked up, subconsciously leaning into the warmth of the other person. He wasn’t sure if the shaking was caused by the person carrying him, or the cold, or the illness tearing it’s way through him, but he found he didn’t particularly care.

Someone had found him. Someone warm. That was enough for him.

Somewhere deep inside him, Dream was screaming at himself, telling himself to _run, you don’t know who this is, they could be a threat, get away as fast as you can and don’t look back, you don’t need them just run-_

His limbs were heavy, his eyelids dragging down with exhaustion.

Dream didn’t know who was holding him, or where they were going, but he knew he wouldn’t be awake when they got there.

He felt his body go limp as he passed out in this person’s arms, already unconscious, the alarmed cry of whoever had saved him falling on deaf ears.

* * *

He caught snippets of his surroundings as Dream flashed in and out of consciousness.

He would wake up to someone wiping the sweat off his brow, muttering softly to themselves as they worked, eyes filled with concern staring down at him as he blinked sluggishly.

Then he would be back under, exhaustion dragging him down.

There were other times he would awaken, feeling as if his ears were full of cotton, his mouth dry as a desert, and he would hear someone humming softly beside him, the periodic sound of pages turning in a book breaking through every so often.

Dream would catch glimpses of the world before being forced back into unconsciousness, only one thought playing through his mind each time.

The unwavering feeling of being _safe._

* * *

Dream woke slowly, his eyes blinking open as he regained consciousness.

The first thing he noticed was how fucking bright it was, forcing him to slam his eyes shut against the blinding light, the brief glimpse he’d caught already making his head ache.

The second thing he noticed was that he had no idea where he was.

Dream carefully opened his eyes, adjusting to the light in the room, still squinting, but at least he could see.

Looking around, there wasn’t much information he could gather from the room he was in. It was small, the lanterns placed around the room casting a warm glow on everything (his eyes had adjusted to the light in the room, the blinding white it had been when he first woke up had dulled to a soft yellow glow), and there was a small desk in the corner of the room, a bookshelf filled with various books and trinkets next to it.

There were a couple of paintings hanging on the wall, along with some woven banners with crests Dream didn’t recognize, and a dark green wool rug next to the bed. The bed was piled high with blankets, but if he hadn’t seen them for himself, Dream never would’ve guessed how many were stacked atop him. It felt like he had one fairly thin blanket at most, a chill still working its way through his body.

The room was void of anything that might give him a hint as to who his mystery saviour had been. No photos, no obvious articles of clothing, nothing. Just him, in a room that somehow felt more of a home that anywhere else he had lived had felt.

Dream took a moment to assess himself. His head was pounding now, the headache coming back full force, only worsened by the light of the room. His bones ached and his muscles were sore, only worsened by the cramping of his stomach. Dream wasn’t sure if he was starving, or seconds away from throwing up.

He could feel sweat dripping down his forehead, but his body had begun to shiver again, a war breaking out within himself, leaving him unsure whether he wanted to burrow deeper beneath the blankets or throw them all off of himself at once.

He didn’t have long to debate between the two options, before the door was slowly opening, the last face he had ever expected to see peering into the room.

Philza’s eyes scanned the room before locking onto him, his eyes lighting up at the sight of him in the bed.

“Oh good, you’re awake! I was starting to get worried, you weren’t waking up, and I wasn’t sure how serious the virus was. At least you’re alright now!” Philza said, making his way towards Dream. He stopped in his tracks when he saw the younger flinch away, curling into himself as well as he could beneath the layers of blankets.

“Is everything alright, Dream?” Philza asked, watching the younger with concern, but not moving any closer.

“I…” Dream started, wincing at how sore his throat was. He coughed a couple times, deep coughs that rattled in his chest, before continuing, “where...am I?”

Phil gave him a soft smile, waving his hands around slightly as he spoke, “I was heading back to my world when I heard something in the woods. I went over to check it out, in case someone needed help, and it’s a good thing I did!” he chuckled, offering Dream a wry smile.

“If I had gotten there any later, you might not have made the trip back to my home.”

Dream paused at that, thinking back to how cold he had felt lying there on the ground, and how sure he was that he wouldn’t make it through the night.

He looked back at Phil, the unmasked, genuine _kindness_ on his face. He looked at the smile in his eyes, and the genuine want to help evident in his face, and gave him a small nod.

“Thank you…” he said, his voice weak, each word scratching at his throat, sending small waves of pain down as he spoke.

Phil looked at him in concern, clearly wanting to reach out to comfort him, but not wanting to frighten him again, before he settled on facing Dream and saying, “Let me grab you a glass of water. Your throat’s gotta hurt, and it’s been a couple of days.”

Dream just nodded in response, watching as Phil left the room, leaving the door open behind him, the sound of his footsteps fading down the hall.

Dream closed his eyes as his stomach twisted, trying to breathe through the pain and keep the almost non-existent contents of his stomach where they were.

His efforts were futile though, and not a moment later, Dream was hunched over the side of the bed, grabbing the trash can that had been placed next to him for just this reason, and throwing up whatever food he’d had left in him, spitting weakly into the garbage.

That was how Phil found him as he walked back into the room. He let out a small gasp before placing the glass of water on the desk, rushing over to Dream’s side.

He felt the older man sit down beside him, but he couldn’t find it in himself to move away, too focused on expelling all of the contents of his stomach into the trash.

“Is it alright if I touch you?” he heard Phil ask from beside him. Dream could’ve cried at that. He might’ve cried, if he was being honest. He wasn’t sure if the liquid pouring down his face was tears or sweat.

He nodded blindly, eyes squeezed shut in pain, and his body, which he hadn’t even realised had tensed up, relaxed in relief as a hand made its way to his head, soft fingers carding through his gross, sweaty hair.

Dream leaned into the touch immediately, any dignity he had been clinging onto now out the window, left somewhere in the forest he had been found in.

They sat like that for a couple minutes, Dream heaving into the trash as Phil offered him any comfort he could, starting to hum a calming song a couple of minutes in, his voice soft and low.

Slowly, Dream’s heaves turned into coughs, and he let the trash can fall back to the floor, choosing to instead cover his mouth with his elbow as he coughed, his body shaking with the effort.

Phil just wrapped his arms around him, slowly pulling him back up into a sitting position, pulling the blankets back up over his chest and tucking him in gently.

“Do you feel up to some water?” he asked, retrieving the cup from the table and offering it to Dream.

He could only nod in response, and seeing how weak he was, Phil lifted the glass to his lips, slowly tipping it back so the younger could drink it slowly.

He managed to drink about a third of the cup before Phil pulled it away, drawing a whine from the younger man, which he would deny ever happened when he got better.

Phil laughed, patting the blonde’s head and ruffling his hair slightly, “I know kiddo, I know you want more. But you can’t push yourself right now. We don’t want you throwing it all back up immediately.”

Dream just whined in response, pushing his head up against the hand still stroking it, drawing another chuckle from Phil.

“It hurts,” he said weakly, his voice slightly stronger after the water, but it was still a fight to get each word out, “please…”

Phil sighed, placing a gentle kiss to Dream’s forehead, smoothing his hair back, away from his face. “I know kid, but you’ve made it through the worst of it. We’ve just gotta make sure you stay warm, and get lots’a rest now. Don’t worry, you’re gonna be fine!”

Dream leaned into the embrace, the warmth calming him down as Phil began to hum again, his hand still a steady presence on Dream’s head.

He closed his eyes, the warmth of the house surrounding him, telling him that he was _safe._

Dream couldn’t help but agree.

He fell back onto the bed, pulling the blankets up to his chin, and fell asleep to the feeling of a hand in his hair and lips on his head, kissing him gently before whispering into his hair.

“I’ve got you kid. You can rest now.”

**Author's Note:**

> there we go babes!! it they!!!
> 
> my plan for this is to just have a series of oneshots about Dream collecting various parental figures on the Dream SMP bc i think he deserves them!!! as a treat!!!
> 
> anyways, if you enjoyed pls consider leaving a comment/kudos bc i love reading any feedback u guys have for me!!
> 
> if ur interested you can find me on insta @caydiink
> 
> thank you for reading!!!


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